November 1, 2016

State govt to table motion to return 1963 status – Adenan

Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Adenan Satem disclosed that a comprehensive motion which covers all aspects of Sarawak’s rights including the Territorial Sea Act 2012 will be tabled at the next State Legislative Assembly (DUN) Sitting, scheduled to be held from Nov 21 to 30.

“This will be a comprehensive motion including the Territorial Sea Act which we regard as no longer in effect because the emergency ordinance has been withdrawn and the status of Sabah and Sarawak are separate from the states of West Malaysia,” he remarked.

“The constitution says that the states of Malaysia are the states of West Malaysia, Sabah and Sarawak, and Singapore. Of course, Singapore doesn’t apply anymore. They changed that in 1976 to say that the states of Malaysia are the states of West Malaysia, Sabah and Sarawak as the 13 states on the same status.

“We want to change this back to what it originally was. So it will be a comprehensive motion to bring us back to the status we occupied way back in 1963,” he explained.

Meanwhile, the state government also plans to introduce a legislation on the distribution and reticulation of gas in Sarawak either at the next sitting or the one thereafter.

Adenan said this was because the distribution and reticulation of gas in the state for consumer consumption was not properly regulated.

“It appears to be a vacuum and there’s no proper law in the distribution and reticulation of gas in the state. This is a state power within Sarawak and we intend to introduce legislation in the coming DUN sitting or the one after this,” he told a press conference after witnessing the contract signing ceremony of the E6 Field Development Project for Sarawak Shell Berhad between the management of Shell Companies in Malaysia and Brooke Dockyard and Engineering Works Corporation at a leading hotel here today (Nov 1).

Currently, the distribution and reticulation of gas is confined to Miri.

“We want to extend it to a bigger area, all the way to Bintulu,” he said, adding that the legislation on the distribution and reticulation of gas covers any piping of gas or distribution of gas that requires a license from the state.

Also present during the press conference was State Secretary Tan Sri Datuk Amar Morshidi Abdul Ghani.